Awakenings

By James Grahn

1. Dream

Bee-Keep looked onward at the action that was unfolding in his bar.

Rob said, “Well, my hand's still…”He paused to look at his arms.“Shit!” he exclaimed noticing he was at a sudden lack for hands.He hit Mule in the face with his stump.Mule staggered back.“That’s what you get for nicking my hands!” Rob exclaimed.

Meanwhile, a fight broke out between Dazz and Zsinj.Jades blinked solemnly, appearing a bit confused at all the goings on.The holo barman waved his spare set of hands, happy to have something to watch.Phace had stopped contemplating a few of his favorite things long enough to beat Mule with a severed arm.

Before Bee noticed his sudden approach, Boba slapped Bee.“What was that for?” Bee asked, feeling a prickly cold spreading through his cheek.The room temperature seemed to drop below zero.Bee-Keep started to shiver as the bar was replaced by the cold metal outline of a coffin.He shivered for forty minutes straight until he gained enough control to stretch his cramped limbs and climb out of the coffin.He grabbed a robe on his way upstairs to the back room of The Elite Bar.It had been several centuries since he had last seen it, according to his timepiece.What a way to start the day!

Bee staggered into the back room of the bar, making his way to the Tachcomm with the floor groaning under his heavy footfalls.The last time he had been roused, it had just been some Augurs poking about, wondering if there were any last vestiges of technology or any factories on the surface.He never responded, and they disappeared.Bee decided to treat that as a good sign: hyperspace had at least healed.Yet with only one ship… and piloted by Augurs, no less, Bee decided that civilization, at least human civilization, wasn’t up to par quite yet.So he descended back to the cryogenic crypt with a heavy heart aching to be put on ice.

He triggered the Tachcomm half expecting the to contact another Augur.Can Augurs forget?Just how long could they live?If you would have asked Bee-Keep, he would have told you in depth why he didn’t trust Augurs.For one thing, they were too public and private all at once.Too public in their interactions with the (then) various nations, yet too private with all of their information.For another… well, just ask Bee sometime.

The vessel responded.Bee suppressed a grin as he saw a human face on the screen.“Ah good, a human face,” the speakers sounded.Bee noticed that the lips weren’t moving the right way, that the translator must be active, making him feel uneasy.The computer must’ve exchanged languages with the unknown ship prior to waking him.Though perhaps, he mused, it’s a sign that this bunch of humans had not been in constant contact with the Augurs who spoke Galactic with eerie, effortless accuracy.

Bee-Keep shook his head, clearing it.The face on the screen continued, “What level of technology do you have?”

“Over 100 spaceworthy craft with hyperdrives and one hell of a bar.”

The face on the screen smiled.“Requesting permission to land.”

“One thing,” Bee-Keep said, “What nation do you represent?”

“The Republic.”

“Permission granted,” Bee said, his curiosity peaking.It was time to wake the others up.

Bee went down the steps and punched a large button near the entrance to the cryocrypt.Nearly one hundred hisses sounded down the long chamber.The Elite Project would awake within an hour.Minus one.He looked in the direction of the empty coffin.Porphyre hadn’t made it.

Bee shook his head and started up to the bar.He had hundreds of drinks to make.

2. TEB lives again

Within the hour, the Elite Project was roused.The bar was bustling with laughter and conversation.Bee activated the holo-barman to serve the drinks as he caught up with his friends.

“Those dreams you get as you defrost… they’re something, eh?” Jades asked, taking a swig of brown.

“Quite,” Bee said, choosing not to mention Rob’s severed hands.Rob was a bit of a psychology buff… and there was no telling what that might mean according to his theories.

Rob noticed Bee’s sustained gaze in his direction.“So,” Rob said, “What’s this Republic all about?”

“Our plan succeeded, the ark made it, and humanity not only survived, but thrived in the new galaxy.Details are a little sketchy, but there appear to be several nations other than the Republic in this new galaxy, one called the Regiment, another called the Corporate Confederation.Also, while we’ve been sleeping, humankind has established contact with two new species of aliens.”

“Aliens...I hope that they’re nothing like the Thargoids or Augurs.That was just one big headache.Any word on what they’re called?” Rob asked.

“No word yet.We’re awaiting more details.”

“What of the Milky Way?” Jades asked.“How’s the old girl doing?”

Bee glanced around and said, “About as we expected.The prolonged resource drought caused by the collapse of hyperspace lead to the downfall of all of the old nations.Even worse, it doesn’t appear any single group other than the Augurs have gotten their act together.The Commander on the Republic ship spoke of many worlds that had reverted to the industrial age.A few have early space colonies, but nothing on the level we could have hoped for.The Augurs are the only ones who still possess hyperspacial travel, and they’re only hanging on by a thread.They have established a theocracy called The Order that has spread out over a radius of about a fourth of the Federation, but they’re starting to claim new systems…”

“I see.What of the Thargoids?” Jades asked.

“That was my first question I asked after I was told of the Augurs.They’ve never heard of Thargoids,” Bee replied.

“What then, genocide?” Rob asked.

“A similar evacuation as our own?” Jades ventured.

“Assimilation?” Rob countered.

Bee shook his head.“Without any more information, all we can do is speculate, but there are more important matters at hand…” He gestured towards the door.

A tall stranger walked in, followed by a cloaked figure and a crafty-looking bald man.“Greetings!My name is Volnaris!” exclaimed the tall man, scuffing his shoes on the polished bar floor.Bee grimaced.A few of the more anxious patrons moved their hands to their belts, armpits, ankles, and wherever else they may have placed a weapon.

The man opened his hands and spread them outward, in a shrugging movement.Gradually, the patrons relax, though many still eyed the bald man and the shadowy figure between them.

The tall traveler paced over to the bar, tapping on it with his knuckle.“What’s your specialty here, barkeep?”

“We’ve got brown,” Bee replied unenthusiastically.

“Brow-en it is!” the man replied, trying to pronounce the new word correctly.For the first time, Bee noted, his mouth moved in sync with a word.Brown wasn’t a part of their vocabulary.

“Just who are your companions?” Bee asked.

Volnaris glanced back at those behind him.He straightened.With a suddenly booming voice, he addressed the bar.“As you may well know, I come as an official representative of the Republic.My concealed partner is the Reoliscan of my crew.The Reol have renowned skills in diplomacy and are known for their neutrality in human affairs.It was for these reasons that every Republic exploration vehicle carries one by regulation to express its wish for peace and fairness in its dealings with any potential new race.”

The figure made some elaborate gestures beneath its robe.The bar grew quiet.“He wishes to convey his humility and gratitude for the words of his compatriot,” the bald man announced.

“Ah yes, the third member of Republic exploration crews is a wild card slot.I chose a representative of the Confederation of Corporate Worlds.Not because of his nationality, but because of his skills in engineering, surveying, and negotiation,” the Republican said.

“Just how many nations are there in the new galaxy?” Bee asked.

Volnaris frowned for a moment, then said, “Let’s see… there’s the Unified Republic of Worlds, Nation of Reoliscan, The Corporate Confederation of Worlds, The Regime… that’s it, aside from a few small unaligned nations.”

“Do not forget the Remnants of Imperia,” the bald man said.

Volnaris gritted his teeth.“I have not forgotten, but despite their claims, the Remnants of Imperia is nothing but a terrorist faction.”

“As you wish,” the bald man said, grinning at the Republican’s strained expression.

The robed figure gestured again.The Republican noted his movements and spoke.“It wishes that it be known that there is another force to be reckoned with… that of the Rukarians.The Rukarians are another group of aliens at the rim of explored space.No one has yet seen the rim of their space, meaning they could have colonized an area of space far greater than humans.However, the Ruks do not pose a substantial threat, for they are far too fragmented to mount any form of invasion.”

“With five nations, they might say the same about you,” Jades commented.

Bee shook his head, “Five nations… it might take forever to establish relations with all of them.”

“Four nations,” the Republican corrected.

“Still too many,” Bee said.

Volnaris shrugged.

“And the Augurs have the control of the only major nation in this galaxy?” Bee asked.

The Republican nodded.The bald man slowly approached, only to turn suddenly in the opposite direction.The bar chatter resumed.

3. Fallen Angels

Bee-Keep paced behind the bar.There was much to do, but most important of all would be to start reorganizing The Elite Project to the tasks which would best befit these times.They must hold together for the next several years, for any of them to even stand a chance in this new time.Bee noticed Rob sitting in the corner, nursing a mug of brown.He walked up to him.

“Rob, have you finished that history of The Elite Project you were working on?You’ve had enough time…”

“Actually, I’ve had just about enough with that self-indulgent tripe!” Rob spat sourly into the mug.

For an instant, Bee wondered what Porphyre might have said if offered the position of historian.He brushed the thought aside.“No matter.We’ve got more important business at hand,” Bee continued.“Such as allocating tasks to the various members. Mobilizing them.Letting one hand know what the other hundred are up to.”

Rob nodded, suddenly acting oddly sober.“I’ll get on it.”

Now, Bee thought, time to see if there’s any history to catch up on…

He turned to the Holo-Barman.“Scan all recorded transmissions.Isolate any transmissions relating to the current powers or pertaining to the Bar.”

The Holo-Barman flickered into a position of consideration for a moment then looked up.“There are two transmissions of high relevance.”

“Can you summarize?”

The Holo-Barman rolled his eyes.“That is beyond my capability.However, one has a summary attached.”

Bee silently signed for the hologram to proceed in reading the summary.

It cleared its throat.“Ahem.Point one: Evil in the World.Point two: The Sanctity of the Church.Point three: The Evils of Liquor.Point four: The Path of the Righteous.”

“Document origin?” Bee queried.

“The Augur Press Agency.”

“I should have known.They’re going to cut into my business.”

“Should I play the other article?” the Holo-Barman asked, seemingly impatient.

“Go ahead,” Bee sighed.

“Skipping to relevant location.”

The Holo-Barman faded slightly as the Holoset activated, projecting its image onto a raised tray on the bar.Upon the tray appeared half of a pulpit and the upper half of a man as well.

The man spoke, “Behold.Augurs once saved humanity from its doom, but now it is once again on the brink.Gog and Ma’gog have manifested themselves in the new galaxy.”

Abrief pause.

An unseen crowd murmured disapprovingly.

“Yes, friends.It is true.The two evil forces (someone in the crowd echoed, “evil”) which led to the desecration and ravishing of this galaxy have spread to the next.The Republic and Regiment are Gog and Ma’gog recreated to bring the angel of Ar-ma-ged’-don back to unleash his righteous justice upon the people!(scattered gasps and cries)And woe unto this new civilization, this Babylon!(a woman cries out)For there is a serpent among them!That ancient serpent, known by so many names, has manifested itself in a physical form!(cries from the crowd)Woe be unto Babylon!Though they have eyes, they cannot see what is before them!These denizens of chaos have obstructed their perceptions, and provide false visions in their stead!(anguished cries from the crowd; the preacher sips a glass of water that was hidden behind the pulpit)We were set aside from the first apocalypse for this reason!(A male voice cries “Tell us why Reverent!”)We must voyage into this new galaxy and spread the Word!We will prophesy among them and open their eyes!(a collective cry of “yes”)And we will do it, as always, with the angels on our side!”

The holo-recorder zooms in on a hazy figure over the preacher’s shoulder.The close-up is that of an Augur.Staggered cries of “Augurs are angels!” arise from the crowd.The Augur cocks his head to one side and slowly raises his hand in the sign of a blessing.The transmission ends.

“If Augurs are angels,” Bee-Keep murmured aloud, “how did they fall?”

4.Loyalties

Admiral Andrea paced across the room with his drink several times before approaching Jades’ table.He pulled up a chair, sitting across from Jades.

“Jades,” he began.

Jades nodded.“Andrea…”

“It’s over now, isn’t it?” Andrea asked.

Jades waved his hand.“It must be.”

“What does that mean, then?” Andrea asked, taking a sip of his brown.“What does that mean,” he continued, “for career military men like ourselves?”

Jades leaned back slightly in his chair.“It means a fresh beginning.A new start.Having nothing…”

“We were on opposite sides of a cold war our entire lives.We were taught to hate each other.We had different ideologies.Different loyalties.Different concepts of how the universe should be.And for what?What does it all mean when time can just destroy everything we stood for?What can we do in this new galaxy of unknown alliances and unfathomable technologies?”

“I, too,” Jades commented, “get the sudden pangs of obsolescence.What are we left with?Training in a now archaic technology, speaking a tongue that no one understands, and an addiction to adrenaline that we will undoubtedly be forced to deny for the months to come.”

“Hand-to-hand combat couldn’t have possibly changed that much,” Andrea commented.

“What then?Boxing?Should we find a gladiator’s arena somewhere?” Jades asked sarcastically, sloshing his drink to and fro.For the first time, Andrea realized that Jades was quite thoroughly drunk.

The Admiral brought up his hands in mock surrender.“I was merely suggesting that our training has not all been for naught.There are translators- we won’t be left as good as deaf.And most important of all, we still have our ships.Archaic or not, they can still take us to the stars.And we both have maintenance crews to hold them together…”

Jades sighed.“I suppose that’s true.And I still am bound under oath to check the Imperial vaults.Suppose one of the Duvals survived…If not, I become the Empire, being 431^st in line, with the task of collecting the records and preserving the history of my nation.”

Andrea shrugged.“I have no such task.The Federation never took much interest in cryogenics.And the historical records were dispersed among the people.No one should have any trouble finding them.”

“We had our different ways…”

Andrea rose.A moment of panic followed when he saw that Jades had also stood.The possibility of a fight raced through his mind, and he secretly began looking for Jades’ weak point.

Jades clenched his fist, but slowly let his fingers uncurl.He brought two fingers to his temple, in the traditional Federal salute.“Admiral Andrea,” he said with militaristic poise.

Andrea smiled.He made a fist with his right hand and brought it to his left shoulder abruptly in the Imperial salute.“Viscount Jades.”He turned his heel crisply and walked away.Moments later, he regretted leaving his drink, but all the brown on Be-Be-Ce would not be incentive enough to ruin this perfect farewell.

Hours later, Jades departed.His destination: the Imperial vaults.

5. Continuity

Katie saw it all from the dark corner of the Elite bar.She looked out into the bar and saw her friends, bustling about, laughing and drinking, completely unaware of her covert surveillance.

She had a sensitivity to flaws in reality, or so she thought.At times when see was alone, continuity would break.Time would speed and slow on its own accord.Sometimes people would break down into vectors and statistics, becoming something less than human…

Cutting through it all, the alien moved silently and effortlessly toward another table.Katie noted his destination, and despite her natural inquisitiveness, she did not stop it.The bug-huggers he (she fancied it a him) was headed too would suit him fine.They would embrace him just as eagerly as they embraced the Hive.She had no questions that couldn’t wait.

She glanced about the room, taking note of the ebb and flow of time as it occurred.Jades and Andrea were in a yet another discussion.Politics, probably.Their gestures were rapid and intricate.Yet they did not seem to be arguing.Katie had her doubts.

Bee was playing something back for the Parson on the holo-set.“I don’t know what that is,” the Parson said, “But it sure isn’t Christianity.If anything, they seem to be selling themselves in the temple.”Bee grunted in agreement.

Katie wasn’t particularly certain which denomination Bee belonged to, if any.The Parson was likely the only clergyman of their time to be alive.Some of the men had either belonged to his flock from the beginning or had joined since.Others, however, were either as ambiguous as Bee, or they belonged to a different faith or denomination entirely.

Katie belonged to the ambiguous side, herself.But she joined with the Parson in his disgust with the Augurs’ brand of theology.It was all glitz; a show put out for the masses.It was blindly emotional, and actively put down any perceived enemies to the faith for embarrassment or worse.Such were the attacks on the Reol, Katie thought, wondering if she were the only one who saw the connection between the ‘vile serpent’ in the preacher’s sermon and the scaly Reoliscan that moved amongst them.It should be interesting to see what becomes of this newly declared blood feud.

Flend and the Corporate Confederate erupted in a sudden, loud and obnoxious laughter.Katie had disliked the intergalactic chromedome from the start, and it only figures that he was hitting it off with Flend.Flend and she shared a unique past.They were professional rivals drawn together for the benefit of humanity.They had fought over every cubic-inch of the ark’s design.She had a professional respect for him, yet a complete and utter loathing for him personally.

Continuity’s breaking.Katie watched the inhabitants do a freeze-frame, then speed forward.She saw it all from her corner of the bar.

6. Incoming

Commander Flend became fast friends with the engineer of the galaxy expedition.The man’s name was João.This friendship started in a discussion of economic policy, when the pair found themselves defending each other’s positions.It solidified when Flend revealed that he, too, was an engineer.João generously invited Flend aboard the transgalactic ship.Flend welcomed the opportunity.

João boarded the craft (which had landed on a nearby bluff) and called to Flend below, “Don’t worry!There’s a translator in here as well!”

Obviously, Flend thought, as I can still understand you!

“What do you want to see first?” João asked, after helping Flend inside.

Flend shrugged.He hesitated for a moment, then, realizing that a shrug might not quite mean the same thing in the new galaxy.He had a lot to learn.“The bridge would be a nice place to start.”

João led the way to the bridge, the nerve center of the craft.It was remarkably drab and only had a sparse population of readouts and buttons.Flend looked around, wondering if the equipment was hide-away or something.

João spoke, “Bridge on.”

The bridge came to life.Chairs swiveled, dozens of holographic displays coalesced within close proximity of the chairs, and the large viewscreen activated.Several of the displays twisted to meet João, each of which was vaguely recognizable as an engineering screen.

“What would you like to see?” João asked.

“Engineering, I guess.”

After touching a few indicators on the display, a screen wound its way over to Flend.“Translate the text and images for Mister Phfflend, please,” João said, only getting out the ‘f’ sound with effort.

The text decrypted before Flend’s eyes.A myriad of details poured forth at him.He reached up and touched the hyperdrive symbol… and quickly withdrew his hand.The holograph was warm.

“What is it?” João asked.

“It’s… warm.”

João laughed.“Of course it’s warm.It can be cold, if you like…”

Flend stared ahead incredulously.“How can a holograph be hot or cold?”

“Ah yes.I had nearly forgotten: the Reol can communicate with each other by stimulating each other’s nerves.While our nerves are much different, we were able to duplicate something which comes to them naturally.Over the years, we’ve perfected our methods… we can now make hot, cold, tacky, and slick, along with varying degrees of pressure.Larger computers than ours can handle differing textures as well.”

“Impressive,” Flend said, nodding.

“It is reassuring to know to we have surpassed the Ancients abilities in technology,” João said, grinning.

“So I’m an ‘ancient’ to you, am I?” Flend asked.“Well don’t presume your greatness yet.How advanced is your hyperdrive, by your standards?”

“Why, it’s state-of-the-art!” João stammered.

“We have drives with ranges quite a bit larger than your drive,” Flend said.His turn to grin.“Can I take a look at your drive?”

“Huh?”

“I said let’s go down to the drive!I’d like to have a look at it.”

“The drive is hazardous to all biological matter and finer electronics.I would show you it, but I don’t have time to shut it down… I’d need at least an hour to shut it down, and a day to get it back to working order,” João said.

“You mean for all of this… you still haven’t developed a decent core shielding technology?” Flend asked.

“Your people designed a shielding mechanism?”

“Certainly… how do you deal with them without it?”

“We surround the drive with fuel.The simple molecular structure of the fuel provides effective shielding… not to mention the practical aspects of bringing the fuel within a reasonable distance of the drive.”

“Oh yeah… I had nearly forgotten… our engineers did something similar long before my time—before we developed the buffering mechanism,” Flend said.

“The parallels between our paths are amazing,” João commented.

“Indeed,” Flend agreed.

“I think we are done here,” João said, backhanding the side of the holograph.The display seemed to explode, atomize.“There is just one thing of which I am curious: your unusual names.My family can trace its lines before the Great Exodus.My name has been in the family for centuries.My family’s roots contain no simple one word names that you possess here.How did you come to them?”

“The culture before the Exodus was chaotic.Many had started to let their children pick their own names.Some chose them based on occupation, like the Parson.Others chose to name themselves after a mentor, like Jades.But as for myself…”

“Yes?”

“Well, I started out, when I was young, as “Fiend.”This was because I sought to become the demon of oppressors everywhere.Well, one day I was trading in the outer mining colonies and some mining dust got caught under the shift key.Oh, you’ll probably need an illustration.Could you give me one of those screens?”Though he asked João, the computer responded by causing a screen to form in front of him.“Ah… Standard keyboard on the bottom half of the screen?”A keyboard appeared.“Here we go… While I was typing in my name for registration once, the shift key stuck for two letters, rather than one.Like this.”Flend typed, “F-I-e-n-d”“They registered me as F-l-e-n-d.I decided I liked it better.After all, a Fiend is just a demon in general, but a Flend has no set stereotype.No stereotype, that is, until I made a name for myself.”

“Fascinating.To honor your culture, I would like to take an old galaxy name, in order to signify that I am a true ambassador,” João said.

“No problem,” Flend said.“Just what do you want to be known as?”

“This I do not know,” João said.“Do you have any suggestions?”

The hatch opened to their right.Rob stuck his head in.“We’ve got incoming!”Rob left.

João paused to consider this.“Incoming… yes.I like it.I shall be known as Incoming.”

Flend smiled, patted his new friend on the shoulder and said, “Excellent.But Incoming, we’ve got something… erm… coming at us, so if you’d forgive me…”Flend headed toward the hatch and swung out.

7.Jihad

There were five of them.Then six, seven.They came in ever increasing numbers.Thousands of kilometers away, on a planet that had forgotten its name, the patrons of the Elite Bar scrambled to their ships.

Zsinj ran to his Ishmael and hastily started take off procedure.True to its nature, the ship had survived the ages intact.He engaged the thrusters and brought the craft into a steep ascent.

In space, he joined the growing mass of the Elite Project, who were in the vacuum for the first time since defending the last hope of civilization.Rob appeared on his Comm screen.

Rob said, “Join the third squadron with Gerd, the Parson, Boba, Dazz, and myself.”

“Affirmative,” Zsinj said, bringing his Ishmael around to join them.

They picked up a transmission coming from the invaders.There was no visual, but the audio came through with only a slight crackling.“The Order hereby lays claim to this system.Either vacate the area immediately or declare your allegiance to the Order.”

Over the next minute, the Augur fleet was told several places ‘where to put their offer.’

“‘Unless you repent, you will all perish,’” came the reply.

“‘The LORD will do what is right in His sight,’” the Parson shot back.

“Right.It’s not like we haven’t heard that before,” Rob commented.

“Right,” Zsinj said.With this, not wishing to hear any more foolish taunting, Zsinj flipped his Delta Inducer on full and let the hours slide away until…

“In visual range!” Rob said.“Break to engage, break to engage!”

Crap! Zsinj thought.Hadn’t meant to be under that long!

“Breaking to ennnnn-gage!” Gerd shouted.

Zsinj shook his head.“I’m on it.”He flipped on the main thrusters.

Unlike the vessels of the Elite Project, the Augur-made vessels had a slick, organic appearance.Zsinj didn’t care, so long as it filled his sight.He opened fire.

A miss!Or was it?As they flew past each other, Zsinj noticed a gaping hole in the middle section of the hull.He quickly analyzed the situation in his adrenaline riddled brain.No shielding, but the ships are somehow ‘soft,’ meaning that only a blow to critical areas could stop it.Just like any other lifeform.Lifeform?For an instant he questioned his line of thinking, but he soon heard something hit his shields (or rather, the computer-synthesized noise that indicated a shield hit).Damn.What is that?He looked to his rear view screen for an answer and saw the other ship flying backwards, returning fire.

               Never slow to follow suit, Zsinj clicked his rotational thrusters on full, only stopping when he faced the other craft.“Now let’s see what happens,” he muttered aloud.He fired his laser in one continuous blast, assaulting the other ship with the focused beam of light.When the heat began to effect the laser’s performance, he released the trigger.The ship now had a gaping hole in the habitat section of the craft.It had inverted due to the pressure.One down…

Boba came though the Comm screen, his white knuckles gripping the controls of his Batraid.“I could use some help over here!I’ve made these guys into Swiss cheese, but they’re still coming after me.”

“Missiles do the job,” the Parson suggested.

Boba shook his head.“Damn.I knew I had forgotten something before I hit the ice.I was going to finally buy some missiles…”

“I’ve got missiles,” Zsinj said.“Where are you?” he asked, squinting into his scanner, looking for the proper energy reading.Suddenly a Batraid with five ships tailing it past through his main view screen.It was pointing backwards, returning some of the intense fire it was receiving.“Nevermind.I’ve got you.”Zsinj casually targeted the hindmost ship and set a missile on its course.The missile did its job.A display flickered to life in the corner of his eye.Zsinj ignored it, focusing instead on the four remaining ships.

Make that three.Boba had finally gotten to one with his laser.It spiraled away…

Zsinj sent another missile away to an explosive rendezvous.Then, the remaining two ships were suddenly engulfed in a broad band of blue plasma.When the flow was cut off, there wasn’t a trace of the ships left.X cut in on the Comm screen.“Now that I’ve freed you guys up, would you mind coming over to my squad’s sector?They seem to be taking the brunt of the assault.Gerd, Rob, and the others have already cut out to assist.”

Zsinj turned his craft to face the X’s massive ship.“Lead the way,” he said.

8.Tickled Pink

Janessa, Jades’ Executive Officer, paced the deck of the Pink.She had a bad feeling.“But what if they need us?” she had asked earlier, to her commander.“It’s not as if they’ll be suddenly ambushed while we’re gone,” came his gruff reply.Still, she had this feeling.She couldn’t shake it.

She turned toward Derek, the navigation officer.“Are we approaching the vaults?” she asked.

“Ten-thousand kilometers and closing,” he reported.

“Very well,” Janessa said, “I shall report to the Viscount, and Autopilot…”

“Yes?” came the mellow reply.

“Wake up the gunnery crew.There’s no telling what might be holed up inside of the vaults.We won’t know if they’ve stayed sealed until after we land.”

“Certainly,” said the smooth computer voice.

She walked to the door and slammed the button next to it.The pressurized doors slid open and she stepped through.She reached the junction and selected the proper hatch.The floor opened up before her.She stepped forward and fell into the zero-g shaft.She never saw why Jades never bothered to install elevators, but it made for an interesting experience, regardless.Faster than an elevator, too, once mastered.She dropped to the appropriate junction and grabbed the handhold. The hatch opened as she slid back into gravity.

She drew in her breath while a wave of nausea swept over her, then shook her head and made for the Viscount’s office.She chimed at the door.“Enter,” came a reply from inside.

“Sir, we are approaching the vault.Your presence on the bridge is needed.”

“Thank you Ex. O.Have you awoken the gunnery crew for possibly taking the vault by force?” Jades asked.

From the hall, a rhythmic thudding.Soon, it was accompanied by a steady “Hut, hut, hut, hut…”

Jades sighed.“Nevermind.I’ll join you in a few moments.”

“Very well, Sir,” Janessa said.After that, a practiced salute and spin on her heel carried her back toward the bridge.

9.Jihad, Second Theatre

Gerd squinted over a screen disapprovingly.Claudia noticed his stare and left her post to speak with him.“What’s wrong?”

“This whole damned battle.”

“Is it not going our way?”

“No, no.We’re making out quite well, I must say.I’m just worried about what this fight might portend.Our tiny militia will not be able to withstand a war of attrition.”

“The Elite Project has an entire corps of master diplomats at its disposal.Besides, Bee and Jades have devised a plan that will assure this system’s prosperity,” Claudia reminded him.

“If it works,” Gerd said.“Only if it works…”

“Coming into visual range,” Dimitris said.Dimitris flicked his hair out of his face and turned to the main screen.“There’s so many…”

“Let’s get to work!” Gerd yelled.

Claudia quickly returned to her station.“How many of us and how many of them?” she yelled across the command center.

“We’ve got fifteen with five incoming, they’ve got fifty with God-knows how many on the way,” Dimitris reported.

“Just pick one,” Gerd said.He activated the combat display.

The view shifted until a single ship was in the crosshair.“Switching navigational control to the combat display,” Dimitris called out.

“Affirmative,” Gerd said.“I have control.”

Gerd took aim and fired.A direct hit.Nothing happened.The ship continued to maneuver and fire at another Elite Project ship.

“We’ve gotten someone’s attention.Five bogies approaching,” Dimitris yelled.“Two fore, two starboard, and one aft.Routing information into the combat display…”

Laser fire crossed the combat display.

Gerd took aim at one and fired.No effect.He fired again.And again.Finally the other ship stopped firing back, ceasing its acceleration as well.An apparent victory.Gerd swung about to another target.Suddenly, Gerd’s ship rocked violently.

“We’re hit!” Claudia shouted.Our main laser is inoperative.”

“Another vessel has shifted to an intercept course,” Dimitris announced.

“Shields are down to thirty percent,” Claudia reported.

“With our numbers, we’re of more use to the Project alive than dead.Bringing us around,” Gerd said, sangfroid as ever.“I’m going to try to hold them off with the rear rail gun.Just pray we don’t run out of things to throw at them.”

“What have we got now?” Claudia asked.

“Four tons of rubbish,” Dimitris answered.

“And,” Gerd added, “four tons of fuel if worst comes to worst.”

“Just so long as we don’t start tossing our escape capsules at them,” Claudia said as she prepped the rail gun to fire.

“We’re going to run for the first moon,” Gerd said.“There’s a strong magnetic field in which we can hide from their sensors.It may give us the advantage.”

“We also have a kill sac located on the north pole.Two snipers,” Dimitris said.

“Very well, inform them we’ll be dropping by,” Gerd said.

“We are out of here!” Dimitris yelled.He punched the thrusters hard.Their course was set.Their pursers followed…

10. Titans

Jades noted that the pressure seal was locked, indicating that no one had entered the vault without Imperial authorization.He breathed a sigh of relief.

He signaled the fully-armed gunnery squad to his side, just in case, and ran his finger along the DNA sampler.It stung as always.The hatch came unsealed.The halls were empty.Jades entered, motioning his squad to follow.

They moved down the corridor, sidestepping with their backs to the walls.“I want this corridor secured first,” Jades said.“Following this, we make a straight path to the Imperial chamber.There will be multiple booby traps.I lead the way at all times.This corridor is safe, though, presuming that there are no hostiles that have made their way inside.”

“Aye, sir, securing the corridor,” Phace, the crew chief said.He gave more detailed orders to his staff afterward, but by that time something else had caught the Viscount’s eye.

“Inform me when the area is secure,” he said, “We’ll make a short detour.”

“What is it, Sir?” the Chief said.

“Just carry out your orders,” Jades said, distracted by whatever he saw down the side corridor.

Minutes later, Phace gave the all clear signal.Jades signaled them to open the door.“This is just an auxiliary tunnel,” he said, “No booby traps here.”

The door came unsealed and slid open.Jades stepped through and headed for the only room that was lit.“What have we here?” he muttered, peering through the window.

Stenciled on the door was the phrase “Lab 5.”Beneath that, “Crew Cryochamber 4.”

He looked in on what appeared to be two scientists frozen in the act of bludgeoning each other with lab apparati.What’s more, he thought he could recognize the scientists: they were none other than Rabbne and Brell!Perhaps the two greatest scientists of the era!

“Looks like an honor duel,” Phace said.

“What are they fighting about, do you think?” Jades asked.

The chief shrugged.“You guess is as good as mine… Perhaps one insulted the other, or…”

“The two most brilliant minds of their time bent on each other’s destruction.How could they have let themselves reach this point?”

Phace remained silent.

“And if we defrost them, what then?One will kill the other?” Jades continued.

“Or they’ll both kill each other.Matters that lead to honor duels are rarely forgettable,” Phace commented.

“Two titans of intellect locked in battle for centuries.Someone had the presence of mind to freeze them, at least.But it was useless in the end, as they’ll just finish each other off later…

“I want no part of this.Leave them as they are,” Jades said.“Let’s head for the Imperial chamber.And we won’t waste any more time.”

11.Jihad- Third Theatre

Katie scanned the heavens.Being in the magnetic field of the moon meant that others could not see you, but also that you could not see any others.She waited in the dark, keeping watch over her sector of space.Her instrument panel was dead, excepting her scanner display; it was switched to passive scanning only.This was the wait.

Waiting always preceded the kill for Katie, because she was a sniper, and she was damn good at what she did.Her eyes stared at the scanner.Her world was contained within it.

A blip appeared on the scanner.The console in front of her came to life.Moments later, a transmission via maser.It was Dimitris.“We’ve got four on our tail, one less than our last report.That one got broadsided by a ton of garbage.”

“See them?” Katie masered to her companion.

               “Right,” Marksman masered back.“Time for us to do our thing.”

Katie picked the closest pursuer and lined up for her shot.She slid the magnifying view over the main display.“Gotcha!” she breathed.She took her shot.Her laser pierced the enemy through the midsection.Part of the craft caved in, but it continued to give chase to the vessel.She swore and sent another gleaming lance through the ship.Finally, it collapsed around itself while part of the inner wall worked its way outside.

“I hate these things…” Katie murmured under her breath.She turned to her next target.

She sighted it carefully and fired, but it then disappeared from her sight.

“Yes! Claudia got him!”Dimitris said over the Comm.Of course.That ship just inherited the kinetic energy of a ton of garbage accelerated to a twentieth of light-speed.

Marksman masered to Katie, “They’re onto us.One’s headed right for you!”

Katie checked her display for the ship.She lined up the ship in her sites.The display that slid into place on the right side of her main viewing screen showed that the ship was accelerating rapidly, aimed directly at her.

“This guy’s doing a kamikaze!” she masered to Marksman.Then she started firing.

She was one with her turret, then, striking out at light speed, taking out her anger and pent up emotions on her enemy, protecting her life.Her aggressor ceased accelerating, but she kept firing, shot after shot into the lingering hulk of a ship that continued to coast toward her.

“Katie, eject!” Marksman cried over the maser, but Katie’s instinct demanded that nothing be left. That was how she trained, the ships always blew up in the simulators… hell, even in real life!And the enemy must die.Must die, for if she did not vanquish this foe, it could go on to kill one of her best friends.

“Kate, now!” Dimitris exclaimed.

Katie glanced up finally, awoken from her monomania by Dimitris’s voice.What?These ships won’t blow up.I’ve got to eject.Got to get out of here before...I’ve only got seconds…

She pulled the escape lever.And continuity broke for the last time…

13. Emperor for a Day

Jades reached the Imperial chamber with sinking hopes.Of the hundreds of chambers along the way, only ten of them were occupied, and only two to full capacity.He found the Imperial throne room vacant.

Jades approached the throne slowly, climbing the steps reluctantly.He took up the crown in his hands; it weighed heavily in his grasp.He turned and sat on the throne.

Phace felt a sudden compulsion to start chanting, “Hail Jades,” but he was cut short by Emperor Jades himself.

“This is not the day of the rebirth of the Empire.I feel like the first barbarian on the throne at Rome.This is the Empire’s last day, the end of the largest and noblest monarchy known to man.

He hefted the crown upon his head and looked away.He fingered the controls to inactivate the booby traps.“Revive the occupants of any remaining chambers.Bring the people to me.I have an address to make.”Jades turned and left the room.

Hours later, the crowd had gathered.Jades plodded into the chamber.

He swallowed hard and sat on the throne.“The Empire has fallen, not by the hands of our enemies or by our own hands.Time conquered Her.

“You are not obligated to follow me.I could not order you to do so.I would advise that you travel to BeBeCe, at first, as the last vestiges of our civilization are harbored there.After that, you may do what you will.”

“Do you need any crew?” shouted someone in the crowd.

“Err… actually, I could use an engineering complement.Most of my staff did not make it to the cryochamer on BeBeCe…” Jades answered, taken aback.

Immediately half of the crowd stepped forward, eager for an assignment on the Pink.

“What about escorts?” cried another.

Astonished, Jades nodded.Many more stepped forward.

A dozen other job titles were then shouted at once.Jades smiled and gestured in the affirmative.

“My Ex. O., Janessa will handle your assignment.”He paused.“Thank you all.You’ve reminded me that the Empire will never die so long as its people live.”

A pent-up cheer was loosed from the crowd.Jades waved it off.“But I will not lead you as Emperor.Perhaps at some point in the future, the Empire will rise again.Until then…”He gently removed the crown from his head and placed it on the arm of the throne.

“We leave for BeBeCe!” he continued.“Seal every chamber for possible future use.Board your shuttles immediately after you’ve finished.”

Another cheer was released from the crowd as Jades walked towards his ship.

14. Jihad- Into the Fray

“It’s fixed!” Claudia yelled.

“About damned time,” Gerd said.“Dimitris, take us back into the fray.”

“Sir, our shields are still recharging from our last bout.We should wait another 15 minutes, at least,” Claudia reported.

“I appreciate your concern,” Gerd answered, “for our safety, but this is no longer about that.Forget every damned word I said about the dangers of a war of attrition.If BeBeCe falls, we’re no more than orphans in an uncaring universe.If it falls, the most we—or any of our friends—can hope for is a wandering poverty and unremarkable death in the new galaxy.All we need is a battle-worthy ship to defend BeBeCe.Do we have that?”

Claudia nodded.

“Then, Dimitris, take us in!” Gerd said.

“Aye,” Dimitris replied somberly.

The fighting was furious.Gerd and his crew downed three enemy fighters in the first ten minutes, but there seemed to be an endless stream of bogeys, constantly replenished by incoming fighters from another system.

“Where the hell are they coming from?” Dimitris asked.

Gerd continued to fire, but spoke over his shoulder to Claudia.“Do we still have that Lucifer?”

Claudia checked.“Yessir… We can’t use it here, though, there are friendlies all around.”

Gerd shook his head.“Analyze the freshest enemy entry cloud.Let’s see if we can cut these buggers off at the source.”

Claudia brought up the freshest hyperspace entry cloud on her tactical display.“Wow! Look at that bad boy!Judging by the spectrum, it’s definitely within our range, these guys are a couple of decades behind us as far as hyperdrives go.Tracing the cloud pattern…Got it, they’re coming from a deep space sector a couple of light years off.”

Gerd turned from the main display.“Dimitris, take us there.We’re going to do a little hit and run…”

15. Jihad- Ode to Ruins

Flend dove toward BeBeCe with several pursuers hot on his tail.He struggled with the displays to find an a view that would allow him to safely navigate this close to a planet and fire his rear laser effectively at his pursuers.He found himself yearning for the display technology of the Republic craft.

As he entered the atmosphere, two of the six suddenly had their outer skins ripped away by the heat and friction of reentry.Flend watched in horror until the callus of battle extended over this unspeakable sight too, in the necessity to survive.No shields, thought Flend, serves those buggers right.

He made for the surface with blistering speed, evening his descent only when he was 100 meters off of the ground.Another enemy slammed into the marsh, the water and vegetation acting like concrete at those high speeds.Flend spun and wove, hoping to make himself a harder target.His enemies doggedly followed.He pulled up sharply and tried to come behind them, but they followed, keeping on his six.

Flend saw the cliffs that housed the bar’s auto-defense systems.As soon as he entered range, the system pegged him as friendly.It analyzed the other ships compositions through multiple sensors and promptly dispatched the proper weapon to defeat them.

Flend flew over the mysterious weapon.The enemy approached… the weapon fell apart.

Flend did a double take in his rear display.He brought up his Comm. Screen.“Bee!” he yelled into it.“That thing that was going to save my ass, whatever it was, just fell apart!”

Bee flickered onto the screen shrugging.“It’s been underwater for centuries.I had a limited number of nanotech reassemblers.You’re lucky I had enough for all of the spaceships.I think the weapon fell apart when the shockwave from your flyby hit it.”

“What was it?” asked Flend.

“A sonic cannon.Useless against shielded craft, but it can cause unshielded objects to resonate, either killing the occupants, shaking the thing to pieces, or, most probably, both.”

“Sounds useful.”

“It usually isn’t.That’s why I let it go.It’s exotic weaponry, is all.”

“Can you fix it?” Flend asked, straining as he struggled to dodge the persistent and incoming fire from the enemy vessels.

“Give me a couple of minutes,” he said.He glanced toward a display out of sight.“Make that several hours.”

Flend closed the communications window without further comment.His mind raced for a place to spend those hours.He braced himself and angled his ship towards the marsh.He cut a kilometer long track through the vegetation before he reached full submersion.

He switched off the thrusters and his ship settled to the bottom.His hull creaked and groaned under the unaccustomed stresses of multiple atmospheres.He powered down the less essential equipment and diverted more power to his atmospheric shielding.He waited for salvation among the ruins of his past.

16. Jihad- Cavalry

Rob had been designated field commander of the fleet in Jades’ absence.The battle had been raging for weeks, and all of the men and women were battle weary.Rob could see the increasing casualty tolls on his side while endless reinforcements poured into the system for the enemy.The Elite Project needed rest and fresh commanders to pilot its ships.Those things it did not have.

The klaxon inside his ship sounded once again to indicate incoming ships.He turned to his tactical display to see the largest cluster of entry points ever.Rob looked away.This might be it, then.They were going to break them.The Project which had saved humanity would face defeat like this.

Then something remarkable happened.Jades’ voice came through the speakers.“What is this?”

Rob turned to the Comm. Screen.“Jades!Thank goodness.We can use every ship we can get!”

Jades looked stunned.“Just what happened here?”

Rob summarized, “Augur loyalists.Trying to take BeBeCe by force.”

Jades nodded solemnly.“I’m up for it.So are all the Imperials.”

“Imperials?” Rob asked.

“Oh yes…” Jades forwarded the tactical information from his fleet to Rob.Rob looked stunned.

He even cracked a smile.“Your men will go into service immediately.”He sent Jades data regarding the recent battles.“Just remind them that Federal craft are no longer the enemy.”

“Will do,” Jades said.“Out.”

Rob rubbed his eyes.Just when he had least expected it, the cavalry appeared upon the horizon.Hope was no longer a stranger.

17. The Best Defense

Gerd and his crew reached the spot indicated by the analyzer only to find that it was merely a way point, a void nestled into the larger void of interstellar space.Here, too, were entry points, though they were coupled with exit points from hyperspace.The exit points led only to BeBeCe.Gerd ordered Dimitris set course for origin of the ships that had passed through.

The next jump took them to an outpost orbiting an anonymous star.The star map had grown inaccurate over the centuries, leaving them with little idea where they were.The outpost was nestled in an asteroid belt.

As they approached, they witnessed the release of nearly thirty ships from the outpost.They turned towards his ship like a school of fish, eerily in unison.Claudia targeted the immediate threats, but Gerd waved her off.“Ignore them.We head for the base.”

Ignoring them proved a difficult task, but they never fired.Instead, they formed a tight hex-formation behind the ship.

Claudia watched the scanner in fascination and asked, “What are they up to?”

Dimitris replied, “Perhaps they think we’re here to surrender!They are taking us straight toward the outpost.But why would they think we wish to surrender?”

“Perhaps they do not know of jump-point scanners.They may think that someone had to give us the coordinates for us to be here…” Gerd theorized.

“And maybe they just want to remind us to behave on their turf,” Claudia interrupted, finishing the thought.

“Is the Lucifer prepped?” Gerd asked.

“Ready and waiting,” Claudia replied.

Gerd turned toward Dimitris.“It will look suspicious if we start to hyperspace.They may even fire upon us.Route the control to Claudia so she can time the jump and the fuse on the Lucifer to coincide.”

“Yessir,” Dimitris said.

“Claudia?”

“I’ve got it.Setting fuse for ten seconds.That’ll allow us enough time to confirm detonation, but also enough to get out of here before it fricassees us too,” Claudia informed her commander.

“Excellent,” came Gerd’s reply.

A silence came upon them like the fog on a marsh on one long forgotten BeBeCe morning.All that was to be done was done.There was only the wait and the unleashing of the Lucifer… that contained the unthinkable.

Lucifer.Analogous to Satan, the literal translation reads “Bringer of light.”It was this second definition that technology had brought to reality.Although many, when asked to describe its effects, often refer to the first…

Dimitris intermittently used the Delta Inducer.Gerd remained riveted to his displays and Claudia investigated the hex-formation behind them.

“It’s not actually a hexagon form,” she muttered.“It’s tapered in the back, so all of the ships can fire at us without hitting each other.”

If Gerd heard her, he ignored her, and Dimitris, having just roused from a brief session with the Delta Inducer, paid no attention.

And so they traveled on, in an unbroken silence.

“Claudia, ready for the release of the Lucifer,” were the next words spoken.

Claudia glanced towards Gerd.Then back towards her display.They were close.“Lucifer ready for release, hyperdrive standing by.”

The navigation computer ticked down the distance.

“On my mark,” Gerd said.

Claudia’s hand hovered over the button.

“Mark!”

Claudia flipped up the guard and slammed the button down.The Lucifer arced away towards the base.The hum of the hyperdrive filled the ship.

The enemy ships did not react.Claudia set a passive lock on the most immediate threats in the hex-formation and held her breath.Gerd watched the main viewscreen, seemingly captivated by the bright point of light that soared towards the outpost.

Six seconds had passed.A few of the ships in the hex-formation noticed that Gerd’s ship was about to hyperspace and quickly locked on and swung toward their target.

Second seven.A few ships fire.Other pilots react and face Gerd’s ship.

Second eight.Now under heavy fire, the shields rapidly deplete on Gerd’s ship.

Second nine. The shields on Gerd’s ship reach 30%.

An instant later.The first detonation of the Lucifer.

Second ten.A second detonation, triggered and powered by the first, unleashes the raw power of the Lucifer.A hideous light pours forth from it, seemingly from hell itself.All that it touches is destroyed.

The light reaches Gerd’s ship.The weak shields fight it, providing a temporary aegis under which they survive.Soon the ship is bathed in the warm glow of hyperspace, leaving death behind.

18. Jihad- Jericho

Dazz cringed at the explosion he saw.These enemy craft never blew up, and every explosion meant another Elite Project ship lost.The reinforcements of the Empire weren’t enough.The battle would be hard-fought, and while victory seemed possible…

Rob appeared on Dazz’s Comm screen.“All forces head for BeBeCe.Bee’s cooked up some miracle weapon that might be our big break.The more it looks like we’re getting desperate, the better.We’ll take full advantage of the element of surprise.We’re going to win yet!”

Dazz, realizing that this might be the break that the Elite Project needed, set his navigation computer and let it carry him to BeBeCe.The enemy vessels, though considerably more agile at close range than most of their ancient counterparts, could not, apparently, hold their own against the massive engines on the ships of old, as his attackers gradually slipped from view.He thought better of it, then, and slowed to keep his captors in sight.If they noticed this bizarre behavior, they failed to fully analyze it, for they pursued him with the same tenacious spirit.

The Elite Project had massed in the old freight lane, each Project ship trailed by several enemy ships, like bothersome parasites harassing a lumbering beast.The parasites—typically coming at three per ship—were on the horizon, some had already opened fire again.Once the enemy were nearly upon them, large numbers of Project ships entered the atmosphere.Flying in formation, they streaked across the skies of BeBeCe, and the sonic cannon started its deadly song.

The Project ships flew through the path of cannon’s fire unaffected, but the organic ships crumpled and collapsed in mid-air.They fell to the marsh, a feast for the native fish.Following three waves of destroyed ships, the invading ships began to withdraw.Dazz followed them, as did many others from the Project.

“Think they’re regrouping?” Dazz asked Zsinj over the Tachcomm.

“I have no idea.Some of them are leaving.Look!”

Several dozen of the ships began to hyperspace.

“Wooooo!!!” Rob cheered.“They’re retreating!”

The remaining ships formed several identical formations and spread out over a large area.A jump-point formed in the center of the formation.

“Something’s coming through!” Zsinj yelled, stating the obvious.

The something was a very large ship.

19. Dreadnought

Zsinj pounded the controls of his ship, but the displays nonetheless flickered and died.He stood, swore, kicked the nearest console, and began to pace the command area of his ship.

What had happened?Zsinj replayed the last few moments in his mind.After I opened fire on that colossal vessel that had arrived, it fired back… something.But what could disable all of my electronics?What could possibly have that effect?

There was little to do.Somehow, his Delta Inducer survived, so he returned to his chair and toggled it onHours flew by.

The ship was suddenly jolted, and he was roused from his slumber.A clatter above indicated a hard dock.Zsinj grabbed the nearest firearm and faced away from the nearest entrance.

“Zsinj?” a voice asked.

Zsinj sighed in relief and turned to face the voice.“Parson?Boy am I glad to see you.”

“Woah!” the Parson exclaimed, throwing his hands up.

“Oh, sorry,” Zsinj said, putting the safety back on his weapon and returned it to its proper place.“It was only on stun, you know,” he lied.

The Parson slowly put his hands down and cleared his throat.“Yes… well… The Rachel’s up on top.Come on up so we can monitor the situation as I tug you to a repair base.”

“Why aren’t your systems fried?” Zsinj asked.

“It seems that that massive ship that hyperspaced in only fired upon those who fired upon it.It’s piloted by Augurs and it has some type of disabling weapon.”

“I think I could testify to that.”

“True…”

“Anything else?”

“Yes.After they disabled all of the hair triggers of the fleet,” the Parson said, punctuating the clause with a glare that made Zsinj cringe, “they issued a brief statement, basically saying that they came in peace.”

“We fell for that one before,” Zsinj said.“They ended up dragging us into their civil war, dividing us into two warring coalitions.”

“Humanity had already divided itself into two hostile factions.They are not to blame for all that transpired.”

Zsinj grew inpatient and asked, “So they’re here to make peace because they were nearly defeated and wish to pull out before they’re left without a defense for even their own territory?”

The Parson shrugged.“Perhaps.The Augurs are trying to convince us that we have their form of government pegged all wrong.They claim they have no part of it, though they acknowledge that they hold positions within the hierarchy of the official religion…”

“Then why would they be here?”

“They claim to abhor violence,” the Parson continued.

“That never stopped them before,” Zsinj quipped. 

The Parson shrugged again.“Something interesting about their statement… They began it with “Fear not,” the same statement that angels often said in the Bible as they appeared.”

“So they are encouraging the image of themselves as angels… I figured as much.”

“It would seem so… That’s all I have.We can watch the rest of the speech up top on The Rachel.Let’s go.”

Zsinj followed the Parson up the hanging ladder, leaving his Ishmael behind.

20. News from the Front

Had the Elite Bar had any other patrons, the air inside would have been filled with jubilee.Had the Elite Bar had any other patrons, it would not have survived intact.Instead, even weeks after the combat subsided, the members of The Elite Project were still anxiously discussing the future they found themselves in.

Bee studied the Tachcomm carefully before returning behind the bar.He cleared his throat to address the bar as a whole and began to speak.“Ladies and gentlemen.I have just received very bad news and rather good news.The bad first: what is left of Koloszar’s ship has been found in orbit of the third planet.Our last MIA is now confirmed dead.”

Murmurs swept over the bar.

“Our memorial wall will be completed with the placement of this final brick.May all of the dead be remembered as our heroes and our friends.

“I have also just received word that our ambassador’s corps that diplomatic relations have been established with the varied nations of the new galaxy and The Order.Under international law, BeBeCe is now a free and independent port.It is illegal to enter this system with hostile intentions now.”

The murmur rose slightly.But a cheer never quite managed to free itself from the crowd, for they had been freshly reminded of the price they paid for their freedom.

“We all owe our thanks to our diplomatic corps; Rob, who organized it; and Jades, who led it.”

Some rose to slowly edge their way to the newly-completed memorial wall.Others ventured a grin directed toward Rob or Jades.But for the most part, the patrons peered into their drinks, looking in vain for a something to say.

21. The Missing Member

After countless arrivals and departures from the bar, something rose in Bee-Keep’s mind: a name that begged for attention.Now the diplomats had accomplished their goal, he finally had the time to think of it...Porphyre was still unaccounted for.Of course, it was likely that he had died centuries ago.

Still, Bee cursed at himself for thinking of not fulfilling his agreement; Porphyre had said something about an alternate cryogenics site that he would use in an emergency.And Bee had promised to scour the galaxy in a search for him, should he not arrive on BeBeCe in time.

There will be a search, he thought, recommitting himself to a promise that now predated every current nation’s very existence.After a heavy sigh, Bee powered down the cryocoffins and headed upstairs.Whatever this new time had in store for them, they were here to stay.

22.Quarantine

They split into groups to follow leads.The search led the Parson to a small type K star and its system, a system noteworthy because of a quarantine placed upon it by the Order.After a scan of the system, he concluded that the only sign of life was on a world with a rapidly diminishing nitrogen-oxygen atmosphere, probably the result of a failed or ancient attempt at terraforming that was left unfinished.

He sighed out of relief that it wasn’t a methane-ammonia atmosphere, knowing what would await him there.

He landed on the planet with no incident.The quarantine was not, apparently, being actively enforced.

He put on a breathing mask to help them cope in the thin atmosphere and walked towards the compound which seemed to be the center of most of the planet’s intelligent emissions.As he neared what was almost certainly an airlock, a human approached, his progress slow, but steady.He wore a long shirt and pants, but no breathing apparatus.

He bore a small fish on the left breast of his shirt.He put up his hands in what was nearly a wave, yet there was a seriousness about him that seemed to indicate that he was attempting to display he was unarmed.

The Parson checked his pressure readings.“The air pressure here isn’t below human requirements, it’s about the same here sea level as it would be a tall mountain on Earth…” he muttered to himself.“If he’s a native, he might be able to make do.”

The Parson encountered the man at the airlock.He opened it a presentation that bespoke more than a mere visitor.

Once they had exited the airlock, the Parson checked the pressure reading, then removed his pressure suit.The man immediately began gushing a strange dialect of Galactic.The Parson fumbled in his pack for a translator, and held it before him like a talisman of greeting.After he had done so, Phillip appeared taken aback.

It spouted forth the translation.“Hello.I am Phillip.Welcome.Your inspection was not announced, but we welcome…”

“Inspection?” the Parson asked, frowning.

“Yes, you will find everything is in order…If you’ll just step this way,” he said, leading the Parson eagerly toward something which looked increasingly like an airlock on the side of a rock outcropping.

“You’re… not… associated with the Augurs… are you?” he ventured.

“No,” the Parson replied, “But whatever gave you that impression?”

Phillip ran his fingers through his light red hair and raised an eyebrow.“You had better follow me…”

The Parson hung his translator from a chain that was about his neck and followed.

The translator itself formed a crucifix; a symbol lost to the ages.But it had not been lost here.

23. Cloister

“I’m looking for a man,” the Parson said.“One lost for hundreds of years…”

“Long ago, a man was deep inside Augur territory near the time of Armageddon,” Phillip said, leading them through a small chapel and down a side staircase.

“Yes,” the Parson said, “His name was Porphyre.Do you know what became of him?”

“In his previous research of the Augurs,” Phillip continued, “he had uncovered a startling and unexpected weakness.It seems there was a small sect of Christianity that the Augurs were very actively suppressing; Porphyre investigated.He soon uncovered a pattern of behavior by the Augur movement: locate any religion or any ideology that poses a threat, silently annihilate its leaders and infrastructure, then recreate it as it was, only with controllable leaders and toned down ideals…

“Seeing as this was, he concluded that something had the Augurs scared out of their minds, and that something was, in fact, religion, which they had been using to manipulate humans with from the beginning.

“So he hunted out this sect, one that not only had the qualities that the Augurs were eager to eliminate, but also happened to be formed of splinter groups from other denominations that were unsatisfied with the puppet-religions that they had suddenly found themselves in.He acted quickly.To the Augurs, he promised noninterference.To the founders of the sect, he promised survival of the faith. And what he wanted in return was cryogenic storage.”

The Parson considered what he was being told.Is this what happened to Porphyre?Did he hold back the spread of this faith, a faith that could deliver from despots, for his own gain?Concern for his friend followed his contempt for his actions.“So he hit the ice too?Where is he?” the Parson asked.

“That is where we are headed.”

Three twisting corridors later, the crypt opened into a small chamber.Centered in that chamber was a cryocoffin.The Parson ran to it and checked the read-out.

“Damn.He’s frozen, alright, but he’s just been freeze dried without any nano-machines to maintain his body.If we try to defrost him, he’ll die of the ice crystals in his blood.”

Phillip closed his eyes and bit his bottom lip.“Is there no way to awaken him?”

“It’d take some pretty hefty nanotechnology to repair the damage… I guess it depends on what the Augurs could hold onto… or what those fellows from the new galaxy have cooked up…” the Parson said, trailing off.

“So, he lives?”

“You could say that.Though perhaps it’s more accurate to say that he is neither dead nor alive.Is this his fate?Frozen for all eternity?”

Phillip turned away.“He saved us, and we remember him to this date as a saint.Come, I have something more to show you.”

A saint to those he abused?The Parson shook his head and followed Phillip down the next hall.“Where are you taking me?”

“Over here,” Phillip said, pointing to a dead end at the end of the hall.Phillip stuck his hand through the dead end—a hologram—and opened a heretofore unseen door.“The hologram operates solely by passive technologies,” he continued at a leisurely rate.“This door shields against sensors looking for energy readings.Come along.”

Phillip stepped through the wall with half a door jutting from one of the rocks.A beckoning hand soon emerged from a rock and the Parson followed it into a cavernous room.Phillip shut the door behind them and ushered him into the room.“Welcome to our world!”

The Parson suddenly noticed just how many people there were in the room as the crowd quickly closed around him.

24. Order

After a long tour of the facilities, the Parson finally took Phillip aside and asked him of what he knew of the world beyond.

He smiled.“I know much.”

“You’ve broken quarantine?Do you have ships?”

Phillip waved him off.“On the contrary; we have never broken quarantine.We have no ships.But we all have seen the outside world.

“A Tempter comes to offer release from the quarantine once a generation.Once every twenty years, our children are lifted beyond the clouds and see the glory of this ‘Order’ spread over time and space.They say to us, ‘All the Order has to give, we will provide you, if you join us and leave your desolate homeworld.’”

“Do many accept?”

Phillip drew his breath in suddenly and sighed.“Unfortunately, some do.But the majority do not.There is much deceit in the Order.Take, for instance, the naming of their own.While they were showing me their civilization, I had noticed that Bible names had experienced a renaissance through the Augur influence. There’s a myriad of new Jameses and Johns and Jonahs.You’d be surprised at how many Moseses I met on that trip.And none of them willing to free their people…”

“I wonder… ‘…how are men to call upon him in whom they have not believed?And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard?And how are they to hear without a preacher?And how can men preach unless they are sent?’ Romans 10:14-15.”

“‘The Lord is near to all who call on him, to all who call on him in truth.’ Psalms 145:18.”

The Parson turned and faced the wall.“Enough.All I know is that Por trusted you.And I owe him one.So if you want, you can leave this place.I can take you all back to BeBeCe.We have arranged some unique legal circumstances… you could rejoin society and keep your religion.”

“I will inform the council of your offer,” Phillip said.

By the time the Parson turned back, he was alone, left to contemplate the nature of these strange people.

25.Revelation

Days later, back at the bar, Bee silently cursed Porphyre’s charge, that sect of Christians who rejected the offer of amnesty.They had no reason to decline the Parson’s offer.They should have trusted him.And yet, they sent the clergyman packing, forcing him to leave without his frozen friend.

It was an odd feeling to know Porphyre’s fate.Frozen forever, his heart never to beat again.The frozen body a saint’s relic to a forgotten religion that could tumble a nation.Such a strange fate.And one of his own creation.

Indeed, it took a large collection of strange men, all extraordinary in one regard or another, to save humanity from becoming a backwater race, facing hard times and ruled by alien oppressors.Humanity’s new promise stemmed from the roots planted by The Elite Project.

Bee looked over the bar at his friends once more, for he knew it would be a while before he saw any of them again.The Project, though not disbanded, had freed its members to explore the new galaxy.Meetings would now only take place only annually, as they had centuries ago, before any disaster was imminent.Project members were now free to join the society they had created.

And even, perhaps, recruit.Volnaris, the man from the Republic, had already joined, and later brought in a fellow explorer, Maksim.The Project was not fated to die with its last original member.This news alone lightened Bee’s heart.

But what was the future of the Project?Who would come next?What would they see?Would they too save humanity?

Bee gazed out the window into the starry night, toward a faint glimmer of light.There, he saw the future.

Epilogue: Jameson

Bee’s eyes locked with another’s, somewhere across time and space.For five years ago, a young man stood on a cliff on a distant world in the galaxy that Bee’s eyes had found, eager to begin a voyage that would take him to places no one would dare dream of.The man’s name was as ancient as it was prognostic.This man, named Jameson, looked to the stars, awaiting his fate.A new age was awakening.

Story © 2000-1 James Grahn

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